Stock Market & Financial Investment News

On The Fly: After Hours MoversHIGHER: Walter Energy (WLT), up 5.6% after the company reported first quarter preliminary metallurgical coal production was up 12%... Ashland (ASH), up 5.9% after JANA Partners reported a 7.4% stake in the company and said it will continue talks with management... Netflix (NFLX), up 2.5% after the company's CEO said over 4B hours of content have been watched on the service in the last three months... LOWER: J.B. Hunt (JBHT), down 3.5% after its first quarter earnings missed estimates... Harris (HRS), down 6.5% after the company lowered its third quarter and 2013 outlook... Ixia (XXIA), down 3.6% after the company said it sees first quarter revenue below its previous outlook.

On The Fly: Closing WrapStocks on Wall Street moved in a narrow range for most of the session while remaining near record levels. The Nasdaq was the strongest of the indices, as it continues its march towards 5,000. Crude oil prices fell by over 5% during the regular trading session, but recovered a bit in after-hours trading. The market is on pace to complete its fourth consecutive week of gains and close out the month of February with gains after suffering losses in January. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the Consumer Price Index fell 0.7% in January, with the core rate rising 0.2%, versus expectations for the headline CPI to be down 0.6% and the core rate to rise 0.1%. Initial jobless claims rose 31K to 313K in the week ended February 21, versus expectations for 290K first-time claims. Durable goods orders rose 2.8% in January, versus expectations for a 1.6% increase. The FHFA home price index rose 0.8% to 218.6 in December, versus expectations for an increase of 0.5%. COMPANY NEWS: The Federal Communications Commission voted 3 to 2 in favor of adopting new open Internet, or "net neutrality," rules. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has proposed that the FCC use its Title II authority to implement and enforce "bright-line" rules to ban paid prioritization and the blocking and throttling of lawful content and services. However, Wheeler said his proposal will "modernize" Title II, insuring there will be no rate regulation, no tariffs, and no last-mile unbundling. Major Internet Service Providers, including Verizon (VZ), AT&T (T), and Comcast (CMCSA), have opposed the rules, while Netflix (NFLX) has been a strong and vocal supporter of open Internet provisions... Shares of International Business Machines (IBM) slipped $1.94, or 1.19%, to $160.87 after Big Blue held its investor day meeting in NYC. At the meeting, IBM backed its fiscal year profit view but also said that the company now expects currency to impact revenue growth by over 6 points for the full year, which is greater than the impact previously provided based on January 16 spot rates. IBM also said it was shifting $4B into "strategic initiatives," including Big Data, the Cloud, mobile, social and security... Barnes & Noble (BKS) rose $1.67, or 6.89%, to $25.92 after announcing plans to split its Education business from its Retail and NOOK Digital businesses. The separation into two independent, publicly traded companies is anticipated to be completed by the end of August and is intended to be a tax-free distribution to shareholders, B&N noted. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the notable gainers was Emulex (ELX), which jumped $1.57, or 24.69%, to $7.93 after the company agreed to be acquired by Avago Technologies (AVGO) for $606M, or $8 per share in cash. Avago also rose $16.57, or 14.71%, to $129.25 after announcing the deal and reporting "beat and raise" quarterly results. Also higher was UIL Holdings (UIL), which gained $9.74, or 23.01%, to $52.07 after the company agreed to be acquired by Iberdrola USA to create a newly listed U.S. publicly-traded company. The proposed transaction implies total value per share to UIL shareholders of $52.75, including $10.50 per share paid in the form of cash, the companies said. Among the noteworthy losers was Clayton Williams (CWEI), which fell $11.41, or 17.77%, to $52.79 after the company suspended drilling operations in both of its core resource plays, citing low oil prices, and its shares were downgraded at Wunderlich. Also lower following their earnings reports were network solutions provider Inteliquent (IQNT), which dropped $3.05, or 17.33%, to $14.55, and electric weapons maker TASER (TASR), which slid $4.36, or 16.14%, to $22.68. INDEXES: The Dow fell 10.15, or -0.06%, to 18,214.42, the Nasdaq gained 20.75, or 0.42%, to 4,987.89, and the S&P 500 declined 3.12, or 0.15%, to 2,110.74.

FCC votes in favor of adopting net neutrality proposals The Federal Communications Commission voted 3 to 2 in favor of adopting new open Internet, or "net neutrality," rules. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has proposed that the FCC use its Title II authority to implement and enforce open Internet protections, with "bright-line" rules to ban paid prioritization and the blocking and throttling of lawful content and services. However, Wheeler said his proposal will "modernize" Title II, insuring there will be no rate regulation, no tariffs, and no last-mile unbundling. Major Internet Service Providers, including AT&T (T), Comcast (CMCSA), and Verizon (VZ), have opposed FCC Chairman Wheeler's proposals to treat Internet service similar to a utility. Other companies that provide Internet services include Time Warner Cable (TWC), CenturyLink (CTL), DIRECTV (DTV), Cablevision (CVC) and Lumos Networks (LMOS). Netflix (NFLX) has strongly supported open Internet provisions. Cogent Communications (CCOI) and Level 3 Communications (LVLT) are facilities-based providers of Internet access and Internet Protocol communications services that are likely to be impacted by FCC rules on net neutrality.

Analysts clash on DreamWorks following Q4 missThe shares of animated film and television show maker DreamWorks (DWA) are rising, despite the weaker than expected results reported by the company last night. Two analysts offered very different views on the company's outlook following its results. BACKGROUND: DreamWorks last night reported a fourth quarter per share loss of ($3.08), versus analysts' consensus outlook for a ($3.01) per share loss. The company's revenue also came in below expectations. Excluding $210M in pre-tax charges associated with DreamWorks' restructuring plan, its loss was (75c) per share, the company stated. BEARISH TAKE: In a note to investors today, FBR Capital analyst Barton Crockett wrote that DreamWorks' results were "ugly," as they included $155M of write-offs on films and TV shows. However, Crockett believes that the crucial factor for the company's outlook is whether it can consistently compete with the entertainment giants, including Disney (DIS), Viacom (VIA), and Time Warner (TWX). Crockett is not convinced that DreamWorks will be able to hold its own, and he believes that its 2015 results could come in below expectations. The analyst warned that the company may have difficulty meeting its 2015 consumer products revenue guidance. DreamWorks expects its consumer products revenue to double this year, but the movie-based toy space is "very competitive" in 2015, as toys based on multiple popular children's films are set to be released, Crockett stated. Moreover, after conducting checks online, Crockett reports that there does not seem to be a great deal of interest in DreamWorks' movie "Home," which is set to be released on March 27. He kept an Underperform rating on the shares and raised his price target on the stock to $14 from $12. BULLISH TAKE: DreamWorks' results were mixed, but the results are not very important, Piper Jaffray analyst James Marsh stated. The company's guidance for its TV and consumer products businesses were solid, the analyst believes. Moreover, the company "took specific and decisive action" to avert a liquidity crunch, Marsh wrote. Specifically, DreamWorks raised $185M of capital by selling its real estate in Glendale, California and then leasing it back, and increased the size of its current credit facility to $450M from $400M, Marsh reported. The moves should "largely" eliminate investors' worries about the company's liquidity position, Marsh stated. He kept a $26 price target and Overweight rating on the stock. WHAT'S NOTABLE: On DreamWorks' earnings conference call last night, the company's CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg stated that it did not obtain more than 10% of its revenue from Netflix (NFLX) last year. However, in an SEC filing earlier this morning, DreamWorks clarified that it had obtained 14.9% of its revenue from Netflix last year. PRICE ACTION: In late morning trading, DreamWorks rose 5.6% to $22.31.

Netflix to premiere five new shows for kidsNetflix announced that it is adding five new animated and live-action comedy series to its selection of kids and family entertainment. These include Danger Mouse, planned for Spring 2016, Inspector Gadget in March 2015, Some Assembly Required in Summer 2015, Bottersnikes & Gumbles in Spring 2016 and SUPER 4, a new CGI animated series inspired by PLAYMOBIL, which makes its U.S. premiere in April exclusively on Netflix.

Netflix teams up with Judd Apatow for 'Pee-wee's Big Holiday'Netflix will premiere exclusively in all of its territories the new feature film, Pee-wee's Big Holiday, starring Paul Reubens as the beloved fun-loving hero of TV, stage and film, Pee-wee Herman. Judd Apatow and Reubens, who worked together to bring the project to fruition, will produce the film. Production is slated to begin in early 2015.

Netflix may enter Russia within two years, Hollywood Reporter saysNetflix' head of communications in Europe, Joris Evers, says the company hopes to make its entrance in Russia within the next two years, The Hollywood Reporter says. Reference Link

Walter Energy expects met coal sales 8.5 MMT-9.0 MMT Walter Energy expects met coal sales to total 8.5 to 9.0 MMTs in 2015. Capital expenditures in 2015 are expected to be in line with 2014, and the company expects to further reduce SG&A expenses by 10%. Cash interest expense is expected to approximate $265M for the year.